What's a good e bike headlight?

[Modbikemax]

LED lights use a current limited driver, the voltage limit is usually just a limit of the component ratings like capacitors and ics. Most have the driver fitted inside the light housing but sometimes the driver is external. The LEDs have a very long life expectancy but the drivers, depending on quality, do not and are made replaceable. This is seen mainly in home down lighting although I have seen it in some automotive headlight replacements.

What you have is a bit hard to tell because the pictures are small and low resolution. You need to be careful, If it is an external driver you could damage the LED by connecting it directly to a battery bypassing the driver.
Any chance of a bigger clearer photo.

 

[izeman]

All suggested solutions as headlights are totally illegal for street use.
Actually all those were never designed to be headlights.
One much better solution would be to be researched the market of motorcycle headlights with a combination of a 36V bulb.

you're greek NOT german! not everyone needs lights for street riding and some prefer safety over legality. if we start talking about what's legal or not we should change the url to pedelecforum.de.

 

[Alan B]

If you ebike at night on a truly dark bike lane along a highway like I do you may find these LED bike headlights to be significantly lacking.

Not only are they not designed properly for street use, they work against you in trying to see down the road for safety. I've tried quite a few of them, and they have a few problems on the street:

1) they throw a lot of light up and into driver's eyes and can cause them to fixate on your light, or make them not see as well as they should, and in general piss them off.

2) they throw too much light (in some cases) on the ground in front of you which bounces back into your eyes and reduces your ability to see farther out.

3) they don't fan the light out side to side adequately.

A properly designed headlight will have a controlled amount of light at different angles (vertical and horizontal) so you can see both near and far, and it will cut off at the horizon to keep from blinding oncoming drivers. Throwing a few LEDs into a housing won't accomplish this.

Compare the pattern of your light to a well designed car headlight, that's what you need. Riding in the dark at 25+ they won't enable you to see near and far as is needed. The requirements of a bicycle at 15 are quite different and a not too bright flashlight duct taped to the handlebars may be adequate, but not for an ebike moving at higher speed.

-- Ride Safe

 

[d8veh]

If you ebike at night on a truly dark bike lane along a highway like I do you may find these LED bike headlights to be significantly lacking.

Which ones exactly are you referring to?

I've never had one that's dazzled me from light bouncing up from the road and I've tried quite a lot of them. They come with different beam configurations: Some have a wide spread, some a narrow one, some both and some somewhere in between. The handlebar mounted ones that use a rubber band to hold them on can easily be tilted down like dipping when another vehicle comes towards you. This Banggood one gives quite a good controlled beam like a motorcycle headlight, if that's your priority:

http://www.banggood.com/LED10-U_S-CREE-U2-Chip-10W-Motorcycle-Headlight-Motor-Lamps-HiLo-Beam-p-936965.html

 

[dogman dan]

Illegal where? Everywhere in the world? I know of no statute on the books for my state in NM, other than at night a bike must carry a light visible for so many feet, etc. But there is definite possibility that you can get killed by blinding the cars driving around you.

Too bright shining in oncoming drivers eyes can be a very bad thing, but aimed right, a focused led light should be no more problem than the focused led lights on car or motorcycle headlights. I see no legal issues with a focused beam. Some led lights are an unfocused beam, and very bright ones will blind everybody in the vicinity.

You don't have to pay a fortune for it. I got these Ozark Trail brand, 200w cree headlights for under 20 bucks each at walmart. One is plenty, but on a tour I may need redundancy, or more light if the road is really bad, so I got two.

They run on two AA nimh cells. There are similar lights for one 18650 lithium cell too. I liked the redundancy again, I can run these lights on regular AA cells in a pinch.

The rubber handlebar mounts were about 3 bucks each shipped on ebay, but many flashlight type handle bar mounts will work with this light. When I'm done riding and in camp, I have a flashlight to use in the tent, and one in reserve for use as headlight.

On the back of the bike, I have two of the flashy led tail lights. Those left over from some shoddy unfocused beam led bike head lights I used in the past.

Two rear lights helps me look wider, and hopefully not get my ear flicked by rear view mirrors going by.

 

[izeman]

I got this special lense that makes the bike legal to use on streets. It changes the circle pattern to a rectangular one. About 3 times wider then high. Very nice to ride in the forest and when take down very useable in street traffic as well.

 

[dogman dan]

Must have very different bike light laws in Europe. Here, it's more like pretty please, carry something so we can see you? Everybody in uniform, black hat, black coat or shirt, black pants. Try to see them before you hit them.

Here only the homeless really get around by bike, and they kill a few a year because they wear black and weave around in the dark. There's a program now to try to give them lights for their bikes. So then we'll see them when they dart into the path of a truck all drunk.

 

[Alan B]

Bicycle lighting laws vary a lot around the world:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_lighting

I always run a flashing white LED forward and a flashing red LED to the rear, both high voltage and connected to the run switch on the CroBorg, but this thread is about headlights.

If you just want to be seen, most anything will do.

If you want to actually see hazards in the dark at ebike speeds well in advance of nearly hitting them then something entirely better is required.

Based on experience with commuting on a bike lane along a highway and a narrow winding road through a hilly forest, and years of riding motorcycles and driving cars and trucks on the same unlit route, and researching the various rules and products designed for vehicles and motorcycles I have found bicycle lights to be extremely deficient above 10-15 mph. If you want good lighting go for something DOT/SAE compliant, which no bike lights that I've seen are. Vehicle headlight designs are quite sophisticated and it really shows.

Tipping lights down and using a fresnel lens to spread the beam horizontally are helpful, and I do both, but it doesn't nearly compare to the beam from a properly designed light. I find I can see MUCH better with the LED headlights on our Prius V. Even with three LED headlights on my bike I've had many near misses with hazards that were not visible early enough at ebike speeds.

Here's what I'm using now:

1) Cycle Lumenator, high voltage, four 250 lumen LEDs with TIR optics, broad pattern doesn't cut off at the horizon, no sharp cutoff anywhere so tipping down doesn't stop glare. This is similar to the ebae lights discussed in this thread. These are wonderful floodlights but they make no attempt to meet the needs of a headlight pattern, and they throw a lot of light into oncoming driver's eyes. I find turning this light off doesn't matter much when the other two are on since the pattern is so spread out. It is a good backup light in case the others separate batteries are too low as it powers from the ebike's main battery.

2) Fenix BT20, 750 lumens, special reflector and has lens features that attempt to make a good light pattern, it helps some. Uses separate 8V battery pack. If you are going to have only ONE headlight, this is perhaps the better unit as they made some attempt to get the pattern right.

3) MagicShine MG-808E 1000 lumens, reflector type with third party fresnel lens added to spread beam into a wide horizontal pattern and reduce glare, aimed slightly right and down, to light side of road where deer and critters dash into your path. Uses separate 8V battery pack. These have a reputation for bad glare since the bare LED is visible forward and makes a very bright spot. The fresnel lens solves this issue and helps the pattern a lot.

 

[izeman]

for me there are laws, and there is common sense. and this goes for MOST traffic/law enforcement stuff as well. there are TONS of bikers that don't even carry ANY light and they don't get stopped. so if i carry a blinking led in front and a red blinking led light on the rear it MAY be illegal, but i would get thumbs up from the police to have a light. but i also MAY get fined (which is mostly unlikely).
german laws are even more perverted: they need lights that are powered by a dynamo installed on the bike. even though they don't work with the bike at a stop they are not allowed to use battery powered lights. but i guess this was/will be changed because it's just plain stupid.

 

[Alan B]

If you are just trying to be seen, most any light will do.

If you need to see the road without streetlighting at 20++ mph you need real vehicle lights, not toy bicycle lights. Think small motorcycle.

 

[friendly1uk]

I just bought one of these
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/231204828453?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

It is light weight, ideal for bicycles, and has a nice retro look and the light is pretty good too and works up to 80volts all for $7.19 delivered.
The finish is a bit tinny but what do you want for $7. :?

Let me be the third person to back these.

1, they run off the battery
2, they don't use kitchen cupboard brackets
3, They are a lightweight and traditionally acceptable design.
4, Cheap
5, Simple on/off action, no nonsense.

In use, they put enough scatter on the ground to see perfectly well. Putting most of their light into the distance to keep you visible to others. To look at they are intense enough to cause a bit of squinting, but at around 3-5w they are not trying to be a car headlight.

If you put the beam on the ground they won't work so well. Your pupil will contract, and you won't see much outside the beam. You need to get it chucking it's light way ahead.

It can see way way further than my braking distance. I don't see any need for something brighter. I actually believe brighter would be worse, as on occasion you illuminate things in your nearfield, and that's back to contracting pupils.

 

[alpharalpha]

Here are some better pictures

 

[aroundqube]

http://www.starbike.com/en/busch-and-mueller-big-bang/

 

[amberwolf]

All suggested solutions as headlights are totally illegal for street use.
Actually all those were never designed to be headlights.

You sure do like to make sweeping statements, don't you? (Ones that aren't completely correct, either.)

At least some of the various things posted *were* designed to be bicycle headlights (whether they were *well-designed* could be a separate discussion ).

Depending on where you are (like here in many places in the USA) there are *no* specifications or requirements for a bicycle headlight, beyond that it be visible from some specific distance (often a mile, or half a mile). Sometimes it's specified that it be white light. Sometimes there are other limitations placed on it's color (or steady vs flashing) by other non-bicycle-specific laws limiting the colors of lights on the front of on-road vehicles.

I don't know about Greece's bicycle lighting laws; perhaps they restrict you much more than ours do here.



As for what might be better lighting, I happen to agree that existing DOT/etc approved lighting might be a better choice than some of the things people use as bicycle lights, for various reasons. But in at least some (probably most) places, I doubt that most (perhaps any) of the lights in posts in this thread are actually illegal on a bicycle.


I myself use car (and scooter/MC) headlights and am investigating using other lighting sources within their reflector/lens assemblies to achieve better power efficiency while preserving their beams and brightnesses.


I also use (sometimes modified) scooter/MC tail/brake/turn lighting.


But all of these are often bulkier and less power efficient than things people have suggested and used elsewhere in this thread and ohters here on ES about the same topics, and on a bicycle those things are *usually* equally or even more important than other factors about lighting.

 

[Ch00paKabrA]

I use a CREE 1800 lumen like those posted above. Since my dual crowns have 32mm stanchions, I mount it to a stanchion using a seat post water bottle bracket. You can also use it on a 31.8mm handlebar as well. I only have one light on there now, but there are 2 bolts so it would work with a double light set up too.



http://www.ebay.com/itm/16138380234...49&var=460405672057&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

It's only about $13 and they have a bunch of colors. I don't know if you will find it interesting but it works and it looks good too.

 

[Alan B]

... I will say that any vehicle needs proper headlight with specific power so to be able to travel at night, additionally according the successful head light design is relative the max driving speed of the vehicle.
Braking distance and quality of braking ability are also crucial in importance factors.
In summary, the world of electric bicycles due their high watts of power they are considered as one electric version of a 50cc scooter.
And therefore we can not accept common bicycle accessories for this application.
Anything that moves as fast a 50cc scooter it needs a headlight of a 50cc scooter.

Keeping the beam focused over the road and the obligation to not blind other fellow drivers is a must do worldwide.

When driving my motorcycle and a kid coming from the opposite direction has a high power flash light over a bicycle it makes me mad.
I am a human and not a fox in the forest.

Well said.

 

[dogman dan]

Obviously even a weak light coming at you aimed wrong will blind you. That's been part of the problem with the cyclelumenator, unfocused beam led.

And I do heartily agree that lights designed only to make a bike visible rolling 15 mph are completely inadequate for riding 30 mph and seeing anything in time. I learned that one the hard way, finding a guy wearing all black walking in the bike lane one fine dark morning. I swerved enough to not hit him hard, but I went over the bars at 28 mph.

The two flashlights I am using now are not much lumens compared to others, but it is quite adequate for 30 mph travel. The good focus is the key, I get a very good distance from the spot, plus just enough wide spread to see the entire lane good. Not enough spread to cover the oncoming lane though. I keep them aimed right, so they do show me what is 3 seconds ahead, but are not pointed horizontally at oncoming traffic. At night, I rarely ride faster than 20 anyway.

Best thing I've seen yet though, is that one posted earlier. This one. http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/231204828453?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

Very nice to run on any voltage! It would appear to have a decent focus, but I can't tell. Cheap enough to try it for sure, so I bought one.


EDIT. The above light is OK ish, at best. It does run fine on 48v, but it's clearly a china cheap tin can housing. Focus is very poor compared to my flashlights, and full brightness is not happening at 48v. I would say if you want to use this particular one, get two so you have it bright enough. The housing does have a small hood on the top edge, to prevent scatter to the oncoming traffic, so that's good.

Far from "best", but certiainly not too bad for under 10 bucks.

 

[dogman dan]

No doubt about it. Good lights from any decent scooter or motorcycle will beat the hell out of the typical dim, "made for a pedal bicycle" lights.

Its a good solution, as long as you have 12v to run them on. Some electric scooter lights run on 36-48v. They may be incandescent, and use more power. But being lit good is well worth it.

They work great for Amberwolf. He's lit like a semi truck when he rides at night, and needs it for the dicks he shares the road with in Phoenix.

 

[Alan B]

If the LED is directly visible to oncoming drivers it will fail at avoiding blinding. The LED is a tiny and very bright source. This must be shielded from oncoming eyes. Either a shield or a lens design that blocks this direct light above the horizon is required. On some lights like the MagicShine there are lenses available in the aftermarket that help with this, but a proper design would not have this problem in the first place.

If you check the pattern of a proper light it will have a sharp cutoff line at the horizon and essentially no light above that line.

The Scooter headlights are a good idea, my old moped headlights were not that great though, hopefully the good scooter lights are better than those.

 

[alsmith]

I use a CREE 1800 lumen like those posted above. Since my dual crowns have 32mm stanchions, I mount it to a stanchion using a seat post water bottle bracket. You can also use it on a 31.8mm handlebar as well. I only have one light on there now, but there are 2 bolts so it would work with a double light set up too.



http://www.ebay.com/itm/16138380234...49&var=460405672057&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

It's only about $13 and they have a bunch of colors. I don't know if you will find it interesting but it works and it looks good too.

I've got one of those led lights but it was claimed as 800 lumen, not 1800. Even 800 is probably a bit of an exaggeration for a single T6 without running it at higher than the standard voltage of the supplied 18650 battery packs- 1800 is crazy unless it has 3 x T6 or 3 newer U2 leds.
I like that bracket- I think I'll be buying three of them- thanks for the heads up!

 

[alpharalpha]

Finally heard back from the seller and that white box is indeed the driver and the high/low/strobe feature is activated by wiring it to a 3 wire switch and turning on and off to go to the next feature. I've never done this before, there is a red, black and white wire, can anyone tell me where these should go on the 3 wire switch?
Mine is the U3, says 1600 flux and run 2.5 amps, I've got it mounted on my front rack so it's down low, right above the front tire so I hopefully won't be blinding anybody.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday.

 

[friendly1uk]

I don't do flashing. It reduces visibility and may cause people to have fits. This doesn't make my route easier.
I do have a flashing rear light, as that is for other people to see, not me. It is also just illuminating itself, not it's surroundings. As it is red, it has little effect on night blindness. Though with over half a dozen functions I can't wait to bin the thing for a simple on/off unit.



I'm not sure that low down light placement is that effective. You might not be able to pitch it down at as great an angle. It won't make it through the windows of parked cars to keep you more visible. It will light up your tyre, reducing your far field vision. I considered a light each side of my forks but for these reasons decided against it. I would still want my head mounted torch.

 

[Alan B]

I purchased a new bike headlight last year but have not tested it much until this last week. It did a better job for me than the other lights I've been running. Here's the full report:

Tonite a meeting ran late so I had the opportunity to test my lights after dark.

My commute is about six miles on a twisty 25mph road through a park, and another six is along a 50mph highway on a mostly-wide bike lane separated from the traffic by a solid white line. These areas are totally unlit and the pavement through the park is chip and seal which is rough and needs a careful eye. The pavement along the highway is relatively new but there are rough sections and many hazards littering the route, from glass and gravel to trash, lumber and occasionally raccoon and deer bodies which are hard to see with their light absorbing fur.

The Fenix BT20 is a light that I bought earlier but have not used much. It is one of the few bike lights I've seen that makes an effort to produce a pattern of illumination that matches the needs of a bicycle. It does a pretty good job. Better than the other 3 lights I've used - the Cycle Lumenator and the 1000 lumen MagicShine 808E(w/ and w/o spreader lens). The MagicShine with a spreader lens is actually the second best, the stock MagicShine is third and the Cycle Lumenator is last when it comes to putting a good pattern down 30 yards out.

The Cycle Lumenator runs directly from the ebike battery and puts out a lot of light in a large flood pattern which is convenient and excellent for some things, but not quite what I need running in a bike lane along a dark highway. This is similar to many other multi-LED lights that put out a lot of light in a wide beam. Drivers flash me when I run this light, even tipped down. They think it is too bright into their eyes. It doesn't put much light out at a distance (since it doesn't have much of a hotspot), but it does light up in close very well, whether downward on the pavement or upward into the trees and overhead wires.

The stock MagicShine makes a reasonable "high beam" but it puts too much light in the eyes of the oncoming traffic (and drivers don't like it - they flash me). Adding the spreader lens really helps a lot in terms of a nice pattern, spreading it out horizontally and reducing the beam upward as well as blocking driver's direct view of the bright LED die.

The Fenix BT20 750 Lumen Dual Distance Beam has a fairly bright large spot for distance, a fairly dark upper area to protect driver's eyes, and some light kicking down lower in front of the front tire to view the road surface in close. It has four power settings plus strobe and works with either a pair of 18650 rechargeable lithium batteries, or four CR123A primary lithium batteries. They use various tricks to shape the beam including stippling the reflector and adding fresnel refractors to the lens.

The battery case is a bit of a pain to work with, it has an O ring and a removable top held with a thumbscrew. The two rechargeable laptop cell 18650's should run about three 45 minute commutes in high beam (according to specs). There is a coaxial jack between the battery and light so it should be easy to power this from another 8 volt source such as a DC-DC converter. It might work from 12 volts WARNING THIS IS NOT TESTED OR ADVISED BY ME.

The BT-20 is available from many sources, including Fenix-Store and Amazon.

 

[hungarianguy]

Can I use two of these in series?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Super-Bright-12V-85V-Universal-Motorcycle-E-bike-20W-LED-Modified-Headlight-Lamp-/400792305146?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item5d51153dfa

I have 24s lifepo4 so I cant use these with the fully charged pack and I was wondering if I could use two in series.
If not going for the conventional way with a dc-dc.

 

[Alan B]

but not quite what I need running in a bike lane along a dark highway.

You could simply say that is just another flash light tourch.
Thanks for your feeback.

Thanks for your comments,

The Lumenator ebike light is a product of Justin of ebikes.ca, who rescued and now owns this forum and has done a lot for ebikes. It runs on battery pack voltage over a wide range (12-100V) and is packaged much better than a flashlight. They have a new model with handlebar intensity control but I think the beam pattern is still not shaped for my needs.

Most flashlights have a hotspot, this light uses TIR optics for a flood pattern, so it has great fill but not much long distance penetration.

There is also a new Fenix BTR20 coming out that has a handlebar intensity control that might help make it practical to shift the beam intensity based on traffic. It has the same light pattern as the BT20 but a different battery pack and charger.